Comparison of studies looking at the use of thoracoscopic cryobiopsy of the pleura
| Thomas et al5 | Rozman et al4 | |
|---|---|---|
| Number of patients | 22 | 15 |
| Gender (male/female) | 21/1 | 12/3 |
| Technique | 2.4 mm cryoprobe applied to abnormal parietal pleura with 3 s freeze time | 2.4 mm cryoprobe applied to abnormal parietal pleura with 3 s freeze time |
| Size (median, 25–75 IQR) | 10, 7–15.8 mm | – |
| Crush artefacts | 2/22 (9.1%) | 18/42 specimens (42.9%) |
| Diagnosis | 21/22 (95.5%) | 14/15 (93.3%) |
| Malignancy | 13 Mesothelioma: 11 (epithelioid/not specified) Metastatic cancer: 1 Lymphoma: 1 | 14 Mesothelioma: 9 (not specified) Adenocarcinoma: 4 Synovial sarcoma: 1 |
| Benign fibrinous pleuritis | 8 | 0 |
| Non-specific | 1 | 1 |
| Complications | 5/22 (mild bleeding) | 14/15 (mild bleeding) 2/15 (pain) |